Pellicciari Leonardo [IRCCS Istituto Delle Scienze Neurologiche di Bologna, Bologna, Italy]
Ravizzotti Elisa [Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics, Maternal and Child Health (DINOGMI), University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy]
Gianola Silvia [Unit of Clinical Epidemiology, IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Galeazzi, Milan, Italy]
Castellini Greta [Unit of Clinical Epidemiology, IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Galeazzi, Milan, Italy]
Putzolu Martina [Department of Experimental Medicine (DIMES), Section of Human Physiology, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy]
Bertazzoni Luca [Vrije Universiteit Bruxelles (VUB), Brussels, Belgium; Painlab Studio Osteopatico, Milan, Italy]
Rossetto Gianluca [Department of Information Engineering, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy]
Barbero Marco [Rehabilitation Research Laboratory 2rLab, Department of Business Economics, Health and Social Care, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland, Manno, Switzerland.]
Fabbri Alessia [AUSL della Romagna, Cesena, Italy]
Stefano Vercelli [Rehabilitation Research Laboratory 2rLab, Department of Business Economics, Health and Social Care, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland, Manno, Switzerland.] Paci Matteo [Department of Allied Health Professions, Azienda USL Toscana Centro, Florence, Italy; Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence, Florence, Italy]
In recent years, the physical therapist (PT) profession in Italy has grown culturally and scientifically. One of the contributing factors to this development has been the increasing number of PTs who have pursued a higher education program at universities, such as doctoral programmes (PhD).
In 2022, [1] we were able to identify 87 PTs who hold a PhD and 47 PhD students (PhDs). Their bibliometric indices were significantly higher than the national average of PTs who authored scientific articles (including academic ones), demonstrating that PhD programs effectively promote higher scientific achievements.
In the past two years, other colleagues were engaged in a doctoral program. Understanding the trajectories of doctoral programmes is the first essential step to promote the stable employment of PTs in academic and research environments in Italy and to foster the cultural growth of the profession. Therefore, the aim of this study was to update the profile of PTs with a PhD or who are PhDs.
This study was part of a broader national investigation promoted by the Italian Association of Physiotherapy (AIFI) and supported by the Italian Society of Physiotherapy (SIF).
An anonymous questionnaire investigating doctoral-related characteristics was administered online to PTs who were currently enrolled in, or completed a PhD program in September 2023. Physiotherapists were included in a database on the website of the SIF, updated in late August 2023 [2].
The purpose of the survey was to gather data about the attended PhD programs, research background, and employment history in addition to professional honors and recognition of participants. Two bibliometric indices were also extracted: the number of published articles was provided by the respondents, and their H-index was retrieved from the Scopus database.
Out of 165 PTs listed in the SIF database, 101 (61.2%) responded to the questionnaire. Fifty-six (55.4%) of them declared that they obtained a PhD, while 45 (44.6%) were PhDs. About one third (N=42) of PTs with PhDs and two-third (N=29) of PhDs attended their program in Italy. Only 18 (32.1%) PTs with PhDs did their doctorate with a scholarship, while 27 (60.0%) of PhDs obtained a scholarship. Among PTs with PhD, the skills acquired during the PhD were very or somewhat useful for 44 (78.6%) of them, and 24 (42.9%) thought that obtaining a PhD was very important to find a work after the PhD. The tutor was a PT for 16 (28.6%) PT with PhD and for 23 (51.1%) for PhDs. Thirty-seven (82.2%) PhDs would choose to attend their PhD again. About two-third of PTs with PhD (N=37, 67.3%) currently hold an academic position in Italy or abroad. Finally, 15 (27.3%) PTs with PhD obtained the national scientific qualification.
The number of PTs engaged in a PhD program has increased in recent years [3]. Unfortunately, about one-third of respondents had to emigrate to study because of the small number of PhD programs available in Italy and the lack of leadership of PhD programs in our profession. However, in 2023 the majority of PhDs have scholarship or funding (unlike PTs with PhD) that allow them to dedicate themselves to their research activity fully. PTs with PhD found their path useful, both in terms of skills acquired and professional impact. Furthermore, PhDs are satisfied with their path. Finally, in recent years, more PTs have filled the role of tutor; this means more PTs have acquired skills to fill this role. Therefore, the data collected by this study show a growing trend of Italian PTs engaged with PhD programmes, and a concomitant increase in the quality of their scientific production.
[1] Pellicciari L, Vercelli S, Barbero M, Ravizzotti E, Corbetta D, Fabbri A, Pillastrini P. Italian physiotherapists who hold a PhD: ready for a new battle of Thermopylae? International Scientific Congress AIFI 2022. 28-29 October 2022.
[2] Italian Society of Physiotherapy internet site. Available at: https://www.sif-fisioterapia.it/risorse/fisioterapisti-e-dottorati-di-ricerca/ Accessed on August 20st, 2023.
[3] Vercelli S, Ravizzoti E, Paci M. Are they publishing? A descriptive cross-sectional profile and bibliometric analysis of the journal publication productivity of Italian physiotherapists. Arch Physiother. 2018;8:1.
